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Employment Law

Keep track of termination notice date

11/01/2007

North Carolina employees have 180 days to file discrimination complaints with the EEOC. Those who don’t meet the deadline lose their rights to sue. But the date that really counts is not the actual termination date if the employer informed the employee earlier that she would lose her job …

Morehead City firm hit with age discrimination suit

11/01/2007

The EEOC has filed suit against Smithfield-based Guy C. Lee Building Materials, alleging the company refused to hire a boom truck operator because of his age. The plaintiff, 53-year-old Andrew Moore, applied to the company’s Morehead City facility …

Fired DMV watchdog files whistle-Blower suit

11/01/2007

A former examiner for the state Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has sued under the state’s whistle-blower act, claiming he was fired for trying to prevent illegal immigrants from getting licenses …

UNC women’s soccer harassment suit heads to trial

11/01/2007

The sexual harassment lawsuit against Anson Dorrance, women’s soccer coach for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is headed to trial after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case …

NCWHA governs employee incentive and bonus plans

11/01/2007

Incentive-pay programs and bonus plans are very common in North Carolina and sometimes constitute a significant portion of an employee’s pay. But if a dispute develops, the employee does not have a claim for breach of an employment contract. Instead, the North Carolina Wage and Hour Act (NCWHA) applies. The application of the NCWHA, which contains notice and nonforfeiture requirements, often takes employers and employees by surprise …

Minimum wage in North Carolina

11/01/2007

Q. What is the minimum wage for North Carolina employees? Is it different than the federal minimum wage? …

What does ‘Right to work’ mean in North Carolina?

11/01/2007

Q. I always hear North Carolina is a “right to work” state. Does that mean there are limitations on how or why I may be fired? Does that have anything to do with “employment at will”? …

Hiring for the nonsmoking workplace

11/01/2007

Q. May I refuse to hire a smoker? …

Wal-Mart hit for another $62 million in back wages

11/01/2007

You may remember the big employee win against Wal-Mart. A class-action lawsuit under Pennsylvania’s wage-and-hour law made national headlines when the retailer was zapped for allegedly allowing employees to work “off the clock.” Now the news has gotten much worse for the company—$62.3 million worse, to be exact …

Time off beyond FMLA may be reasonable accommodation

11/01/2007

The FMLA gives eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave per year. Employers are free to discharge employees who cannot return to work after that time is up—that’s legal under the FMLA. But before you fill out that pink slip, consider whether the employee may be disabled under the ADA. If so, he may be entitled to more time off as an accommodation …